‘A great loss’

WESTERN BUREAU:

Grief enveloped the rural Westmoreland community of Bridgewater on Thursday afternoon as the family of 12-year-old Deanna Solomon struggled to come to terms with her tragic death.

Deanna, a grade seven student at Irwin High School in St James, was struck by a MoBay Metro bus outside the school compound on Wednesday afternoon. She was subsequently transported to the Cornwall Regional Hospital (CRH), where she died. It was reported that the young girl suffered multiple fractured bones during the tragic incident.

Details surrounding the incident remain scarce, but Antonette Shaw, Deanna’s mother, shared that she learned her daughter was among a group of children rushing to board the bus when the tragedy occurred.

“I heard that the bus came and she a run towards the bus and a one next student push her, and it look like the driver not even realise seh she under the bus. Mi see the video when she under the bus,” Shaw said.

Graphic footage of the incident have circulated on social media, showing young children screaming as the tragedy unfolded outside the school gates.

Shaw said she was “immediately alerted” by the school’s administration and she rushed to the hospital, where she saw the injured Deanna.

“She grabbed on pon mi and said, ‘Mommy!’” Shaw said as she struggled to fight back tears.

HOPES DASHED

Despite the critical condition, the family remained hopeful that Deanna would pull through.

Shaw expressed gratitude for the efforts of doctors at CRH, who worked tirelessly to save her fifth child, but the young girl ultimately passed away during treatment.

“When they told me [she died] and covered her up, mi go pull off the sheet about two times until they said that mi have fi come out. Mi pressure go up same time,” the devastated mom said.

Mickayla Solomon, Deanna’s older sister, also spoke with The Gleaner, visibly distraught over the untimely loss. Mickayla explained that she was responsible for taking her sister to and from the bus stop every day.

With tears streaming down her face and a voice hoarse from crying, Mickayla disclosed that her sister asked to skip school on Wednesday morning. However, she said that Deanna was encouraged to attend school and they journeyed to MoBay.

“She said that she never feel like going to school. Mi tell her seh a exam she have and mi force her. When we reach a bus stop, she hug mi up and when she walked off, she said, ‘Later’. That was it,” said Mickayla, who learned of the tragic accident while awaiting her sister’s regular after-school phone call.

Yvonne Shaw-Spencer described the death of her grandniece as a “great loss”. She told The Gleaner that there is now a void in the hearts and minds of her family.

“Everybody is mourning. We are sorry that we cannot bring her back. It is a great loss,” she said.

At the same time, Deanna’s mother also expressed sorrow as she struggled to speak of her deceased daughter in the past tense.

“We just have fi try hold on. Right now mi can’t stay in a fi mi house because without Deanna, it’s not even a house,” said Shaw.

Meanwhile, exams were postponed at Irwin High on Thursday to facilitate grief counselling. The staff at the state-owned Montego Bay Metro were also stated to receive counselling from the Western Regional Health Authority, Transport Minister Daryl Vaz said in a press release.

While offering condolences to the family, Vaz asked the public to refrain from sharing videos and images of the accident.

“This heartbreaking tragedy is extremely devastating. I am truly saddened by this traumatic incident, and my deepest sympathies go out to the affected families. As a parent, I can only imagine how painful this must be,” he said.

rochelle.clayton@gleanerjm.com